Benefits of Electrical Muscle Stimulation

The goal of chiropractic treatment is to increase movement in the joint and relax the muscles. At Health 1^st Chiropractic and Rehabilitation, our doctors achieve this while using heat, ultrasound, and electrical muscle stimulation to help relax your muscles before doing spinal manipulation. During electrical muscle stimulation, electrodes are placed on the skin that sends light electrical pulses to different areas of the body with the purpose of reducing inflammation, curtailing muscle spasms and relieving back pain.

Electrical muscle stimulation is an exceptional way to help the body in the healing process. This therapy utilizes a very small electrical current in an effort to help reduce swelling and release trigger points that may have the muscle locked up. The feeling of this therapy is very gentle and most patients feel extremely comfortable during the treatment. In addition, this method of treatment stimulates the body’s natural healing method by helping it to produce natural pain killing endorphins.

If you are interested in electrical muscle stimulation therapy, give us a call today. To learn more about the conditions we treat and the services we provide at our office, visit www.hstriad.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with one of our doctors at Health 1^st Chiropractic and Rehabilitation in Greensboro, NC, call 336-543-2231.

Thank You for Your Testimonials!

Here at Health 1^st Chiropractic and Rehabilitation, we appreciate feedback from our customers because it teaches us how to improve. Our doctors at Health 1^st are dedicated to helping patients become pain-free. We’d like to not only thank David Mayers for reviewing us but we’d like to encourage the rest of our patients to do the same.  

“I broke my neck during a diving accident 20 years ago and have also had lower and upper back problems. I am active and have just been living with the pain. Now I am remaining active but with no pain. Dr. Mays is a great doctor and great guy. My lifestyle has completely changed since I’ve been getting treatment. Before if I had problems, I would be out for a couple of days and before January of 2004, I hurt every night. Now I have no problems sleeping. With my active lifestyle, if I hurt, I simply go in to see Dr. Mays and that’s the end of the pain. Everything I am able to do I can do without pain thanks to Health 1^st.”

Your opinion is important to us, so please let us know about your visit. To learn more about the conditions we treat and the services we provide at our office, visit www.hstriad.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with one of our doctors at Health 1^st Chiropractic and Rehabilitation in Greensboro, NC, call 336-543-2231.

Cryotherapy: Icing an Injury

An injury benefits from ice days following the trauma. However, if your pain worsens, you should visit our staff at Health 1^st Chiropractic and Rehabilitation immediately. The icing method – cryotherapy – is an essential management skill that is also a cheap, effective, and drugless method for relieving the pain of injuries. Safe application of ice to your skin can relieve symptoms from sprains, strains, bruises, and virtually any situation in which superficial tissues are inflamed by trauma.

Cryotherapy is an excellent way to heal muscle spasms in the body. Icing is well known to help numb painful areas as well as provide a cooling relief to affected soft tissues. Applying cold compresses to the skin effectively reduces the temperature of the skin and constricts blood vessels in the area to promote healing. It can be done right at home, or we can offer the service to you right here in the office.

If you’ve recently suffered an injury, please give us a call to discuss your treatment options. To schedule an appointment in any of our Triad locations including our Greensboro, NC office, call us at 336-543-2231 or visit the Health First Chiropractic and Rehabilitation website, www.hstriad.com. 

Difference Between Sprains and Fractures

You can distinguish the difference between a sprain and a fracture depending on the physical pain that you feel. A sprain refers to stretched or torn tendons, ligaments, and blood vessels around a joint and can be caused by an accident, fall, or blow. A fracture, on the other hand, is a break or crack in a bone that can be caused by the same types of injuries, but instead, you might hear a snapping sound as a bone breaking. Here at Health 1^st Chiropractic and Rehabilitation, no matter what type of injury you have, our staff is here to treat it.

Sprains are defined by the kind of tissue –bone, ligament, or tendon – that’s damaged. Meanwhile, a fracture describes a break in one or more of the bones. Injuries are the most common causes of foot and ankle sprains and fractures. Many fractures and sprains occur during sports, which is why warming up prior to physical activity can prevent ankle sprains and fractures and so can wearing proper shoes.

If you’ve recently suffered an injury, please give us a call to discuss your treatment options. To schedule an appointment in any of our Triad locations including our Greensboro, NC office, call us at 336-543-2231 or visit the Health First Chiropractic and Rehabilitation website, www.hstriad.com. 

Get More Out of Your Run

At Health 1^st Chiropractic and Rehabilitation, our staff supplies numerous treatment methods to help get your joints and spine in line. When joints are misaligned, they cannot flow through the full range of motion. Therefore, if you’re a runner, chiropractic care can help improve your coordination, increase your balance, amplify your precision and may even give you a better reaction time.

Gone are the days when chiropractic care was needed just for aches and pains. Nowadays, for runners, chiropractic care can be used for injury prevention because it emphasizes proper alignment of the spine and pelvis. If the pelvis is misaligned, it can not only cause wear and tear your joints, but it can put a strain on one particular body part. Runners can specifically benefit from chiropractic adjustments that will improve your overall performance over time.

If you are a runner and think you may benefit from chiropractic treatment, please give us a call. To schedule an appointment in any of our Triad locations including our Greensboro, NC office, call us at 336-543-2231 or visit the Health First Chiropractic and Rehabilitation website, www.hstriad.com. 

Self-Care for Back and Neck Pain

Almost everybody who experiences tight shoulders and neck accompanied with tension headaches knows how unpleasant the pain can be. Here at Health First Chiropractic and Rehabilitation, we offer a variety of treatments to treat your back and neck pain. However, when you can’t make it to the office, here are some self-care tips to keep your discomfort under control.

1. Take it easy – contrary to popular belief, studies on acute back pain actually show that a few days of restricting your activity, and taking the appropriate over-the-counter medication, is all that many people need to allow the strained muscles to relax and unwind.


2. Ice, then heat – Ice and heat can alleviate local pain that comes from muscle and ligament strain. Ice slows swelling and inflammation and using heat afterward increases blood flow to the deep tissues and relaxes muscle spasms.


3. Massage -- if you have a willing companion, gentle massage may provide some relief by stretching tight muscles and ligaments.

If you are suffering from back and neck pain, give us a call to discuss your treatment options. To schedule an appointment in any of our Triad locations including our Greensboro, NC office, call us at 336-543-2231 or visit the Health First Chiropractic and Rehabilitation website, www.hstriad.com. 

Goals of Therapeutic Exercise

Therapeutic exercise is defined as a bodily movement prescribed to correct impairment, improve musculoskeletal function, or maintain a state of well-being. At Health First Chiropractic and Rehabilitation, if you suffer from shoulder pain, back pain, neck pain and hip pain, we guarantee to have an exercise method that will heal you in no time.

Therapeutic exercise seeks to accomplish the following goals: enable ambulation, release contracted muscles, tendons, and fascia, mobilize joints, improve circulation, improve respiratory capacity, improve coordination, reduce rigidity, improve balance and promote relaxation. In addition, therapeutic exercise helps improve muscle strength and exercise performance. No matter which types of exercise may be needed to remedy a patient’s specific condition, the final goal of rehabilitation is to achieve an optimal level of mobility by the end of the treatment procedure.

If you think that you can benefit from therapeutic exercise, give us a call. To schedule an appointment in any of our Triad locations including our Greensboro, NC office, call us at 336-543-2231 or visit the Health First Chiropractic and Rehabilitation website, www.hstriad.com.